Elliott Smith

The celebrated folk-punk singer/songwriter Elliott Smith rose from indie obscurity to mainstream success in 1997 on the strength of "Miss Misery," his Academy Award-nominated song from the film Good Will Hunting. A native of Portland, OR, Smith began writing and recording his first songs at age 14, later becoming a fixture of the city's thriving music scene. As a member of the band Heatmiser, he debuted in 1993 with the LP Dead Air, issuing his first solo effort Roman Candle on the tiny Cavity Search label a year later. For his 1995 self-titled album, Smith signed with the noted Kill Rock Stars label. Either/Or followed in 1997, around the same time that filmmaker and longtime fan Gus Van Sant requested permission to use the singer's music in his upcoming Good Will Hunting.

Smith also composed a handful of new songs for the soundtrack, among them "Miss Misery," and when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced its Oscar nominations the following February, the track was a surprise entry in the Best Original Song category. Although he did not win, Smith performed the song live at the televised Oscar broadcast, appearing on-stage alongside superstars Trisha Yearwood and Celine Dion in one of the most notably surreal musical moments in recent memory. Smith's DreamWorks label debut, XO, followed later in 1998. Two years later he delivered Figure 8, which delved further into lush arrangements and orchestrations. For the next two years, Smith labored over what was to be his next album, From a Basement on a Hill. He would not live to see the album's completion, however.

To the shock of friends and fans alike, Smith's body was found on October 21, 2003, with two stab wounds in his chest. To date, the coroner has been unable to determine the cause of death, and the Los Angeles Police Department's investigation remains open. From a Basement on a Hill was released one year later, just two days shy of the first anniversary of his death, and received warm critical nods. In 2007, the Kill Rock Stars label issued a two-disc set of Smith's unreleased work, all of which had been recorded between 1994 and 1997. Entitled New Moon, the 24-track collection contained three songs that had been previously released on hard to find compilations or soundtracks, including an early version of "Miss Misery" and a cover of Big Star's "Thirteen." ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

Community biography from

Steven Paul "Elliott" Smith was a US-born singer-songwriter whose career was cut tragically short just as he was achieving his richly deserved fame.

Smith was born in 1969 and had a difficult childhood after his parents split up, an experience he later incorporated into his music. As part of a musical family, he played guitar and piano from an early age, but when he went to live with his father he also started a lifelong association with drugs and alcohol. It was around this time that he made his first recordings, becoming a member of Stranger Than Fiction.

After High School he completed a degree and formed the band Heatmiser with his pal Neil Gust. They achieved a measure of success before splitting in 1995. Unfortunately Smith was left with a legacy contract with Virgin Records. Towards the end of Heatmiser, Smith was recording largely acoustic solo material which referred to his ongoing drug use and depression. He finally released debut solo album Roman Candle in 1994. In 1995 he released Elliott Smith and by 1996's Either/Or he was venturing into fully instrumented tracks, all played by himself.

After a brief detour to provide re-recorded tracks for the soundtrack of the movie Good Will Hunting, and a cover of The Beatles "Because" for the American Beauty soundtrack, he released XO in 1998 and it became his best-selling to date.

Figure 8 was released in 2000 and achieved critical approval, but towards the end of the promotional tour for this album, his health was beginning to deteriorate as a result of a growing addiction to heroin. He toured less, and his appearances, when he made them, were becoming increasingly chaotic.

The follow-up to Figure 8 was not easily achieved, and there were several false starts. The process was in danger of being de-railed by Smith's drug abuse and resultant erratic behaviour. Wrangles with record labels and arguments with friends did little to facilitate matters as songs were written, recorded and abandoned with alarming regularity. In 2002 he made an attempt at rehab which seemed to have had some effect. Matters improved and he started to record tracks for the movie Thumbsucker - but by 2003 he was dead, killed by two stab wounds to his torso. His death seemed at odds with his recent improvement and was never conclusively explained, though it seemed that suicide was the most likely explanation.

From a Basement on the Hill was released posthumously, although it failed to include many of his darker songs. It has been argued that this album is not representative of his best work. New Moon, another posthumous album, compiled much of his earlier work onto two CDs.